


(un)known

by bicroft



Series: SidGeno Tumblr Prompts [7]
Category: Hockey RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-18
Updated: 2017-05-18
Packaged: 2018-11-02 05:54:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10938360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bicroft/pseuds/bicroft
Summary: Everyone knows that, when Sid’s asked about his soulmark, he’ll politely say that no, he and his soulmate haven’t met and no, he isn’t really looking; his career comes first, for now, while it’s still in its fledgling phases.(Nobody knows that he’s sort of lying about that first part, and that the only reason he’s not looking is because he’s already found them.)





	(un)known

**Author's Note:**

> Anon asked for "a soul mark name AU"; crossposted from @sidsknee

Sid has lots of secrets- but, Sid also has no secrets at all. 

Sid has Schrodinger’s secrets, honestly; at the same time, everyone knows everything about him and his life, and nobody knows anything at all. He always has eyes on him, looking, but they never really  _see_. 

Everyone knows Sid speaks French, and is terrible at it.  
(Nobody knows Sid knows a little Russian, too, and is better at that. He selfishly always thought it was a little more important.) 

Everyone knows that Sid has a soul mark, and where it is. Everyone knows that he covers it.   
(Nobody knows the name, or that he’s definitely covering it for reasons more than simple propriety.)

Everyone knows that, when Sid’s asked about his soulmark, he’ll politely say that no, he and his soulmate haven’t met and no, he isn’t really looking; his career comes first, for now, while it’s still in its fledgling phases.   
(Nobody knows that he’s sort of lying about that first part, and that the only reason he’s not looking is because he’s already found them.) 

Sid tries his best not to look at his mark if he doesn’t have to, because he knows that if he does, he’s going to start thinking about it, and thinking about it is going to make him  _want_. He still has to look his mark at least twice a day, though; once when he gets into the shower, and has to take off the bandage covering it, and once again when he gets out, and has to put it back on. 

Евгений Малкин was the first thing Sid learned to read in Russian, and the first thing he learned to say; when he was young, and lonely, he’d lay down at night and just repeat the name into the darkness until it seemed more like a hopeful mantra than a name, until it seemed like a promise. Now, though, it’s just another secret. He hasn’t let the name cross his lips since World Juniors and the draft, even if, some nights when he’s staring at the wall of his room in Mario’s ‘guest house’, he feels it on the tip of his tongue.

Sid knows Evgeni Malkin was drafted second overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Everyone knows that.

Sid knows that, when he found out that _he_ was going to Pittsburgh, too, he almost cried. No one knows that.

(Sid isn’t really a big crier. No one within ten miles of Philly seems to know that one, but, Sid still counts it as something everyone knows.)

Evgeni Malkin, insofar as everyone knows, is on his way to a game in Finland with his hometown team, Metallurg Magnitogorsk, who he recently renewed his contract with.

 _Sid_ knows that Evgeni Malkin is currently standing in Mario Lemieux’s foyer, looking tired and a little scared, with Sergei Gonchar at his elbow, murmuring to him in steady Russian as people as Mario and Evgeni’s agent talk in similarly hushed tones.

Sid’s only just come down from his room for dinner, and if he’d been expecting _this_ , and not just ‘guests’ as Nathalie had told him, he would have dressed a little nicer. Not that he hadn’t dressed nice, in the first place- but, there was a difference between dressing to eat dinner with some friends of the family you were staying with, and dressing to meet your soulmate for the first time.

He stands there, still on the stairs, and just… stares for a long while. He knows he’s gaping, but he also doesn’t want to do anything lest he spoil the moment. He’s caught out, though, when Evgeni’s eyes dart up from the floor and widen, spotting Sid. He gapes, too, and without looking away, asks Gonch “ _who is he?_ ” in Russian almost too quick for Sid to follow. He’s pointing, and everyone turns to look at Sid, who flushes.

“Uh,” he says eloquently. “I’m- oh. Sorry, wait I know this one- Меня зовут Сидни Кросби.”

Everyone looks surprised at Sid’s Russian, Evgeni included, but Sid hopes he’s not just being silly when he thinks that he looks more surprised at the name than the language he said it in.

“I didn’t know you knew Russian.” Mario says, frowning. Sid shrugs, and shoves his hands in his pockets.

“I thought it would be useful, if I was going to be playing with Russian guys.” he says, which isn’t a complete lie. He _was_ going to be playing with Russian guys, probably, and he _had_ thought it was going to be a little useful, even if that wasn’t his primary reason behind it.

Gonch grins. “At least that means Geno’ll have more than one person to talk to, while he’s still learning English.” he says, and Sid smiles at him, gracious for the help. He turns the smile to Evgeni, next, who’s still gaping at him. There’s an audible click as his jaw slams shut, and a slow, tentative smile spreads across his face at the same time as a blush does. Sid’s immediately taken with him and the color.

“ _Good to meet you, Sidney Crosby_.” Evgeni- Geno?- says, and Sid nods.

“ _Good to meet you, too_.” he replies.

“This is Evgeni Malkin,” Mario says, and Sid bites his tongue to keep from saying that he knows. “I believe you two have met before?”

“Briefly.” Sid says, stepping forward now. “At World Juniors; we never really got to talk. I was excited to hear I’d be playing with him, though, after the draft.” He didn’t say why.

Evgeni kept staring at him as Gonch translated what Sid had said for him, and slowly, his smile got bigger. “ _I was excited when I heard you were coming to Pittsburgh, too_.” Evgeni says, and Sid flushes again. “ _It made me want to get here faster.”_

“ _I’m glad you did, then._ ” Sid says, and Evgeni laughs. Mario and Evgeni’s agent share a confused look, and Gonch rolls his eyes, knowing more than they did, and probably something Sid doesn’t know, either.

“I think dinner’s just about ready.” Mario says after a half second of silence. “If you’d all like to head to the dining room?”

Evgeni perks up at the mention of food when Gonch translated, and all he says in reply is an emphatic “ _please_.”

Mario nods, and gestures for them to follow him, and Sid’s a little surprised when Evgeni quietly slips into the chair next to him at the dinner table. They don’t look at each other, don’t speak, but Evgeni puts his arm on the table, and Sid can see a thick leather bracelet on one wrist. His breath hitches; he knows that kind of bracelet well, made especially for covering soulmarks.

Evgeni notices him looking, and they lock eyes for a long moment before Nathalie and the Lemieux children burst come in with the food, and the moment is lost.

Dinner is a flurry of conversation that Sid puts only partial effort into following. He answers when he needs to, in English and Russian, depending on whether he’s talking to Evgeni or the rest of the table- though, Evgeni doesn’t seem to want to talk to him too much. Or, maybe, Sid thinks, a little hopeful when he catches Evgeni staring at him over and over again, he’s just shy.

Once dinner’s over, everyone moves to the living room, and again, Evgeni sits down beside Sid on the small loveseat. Gonch shoots him a look, but, Evgeni just smiles at him as he takes a seat in the closest chair, and Gonch eventually just sighs and turns his attention back to Mario and Geno’s manager.

Evgeni still doesn’t say anything, and Sid thinks he’s just pretending to be interested in whatever Mario and his manager are saying, because they’re speaking in rapid English, and Gonch isn’t making much of an effort to translate. After a while, he yawns somewhat theatrically and throws his arm around the back of the couch, fingers brushing Sid’s shoulder.

Sid has never been more aware of every single atom in his body than he is in that moment. He doesn’t move, barely breathes, even though his breath hitches when Evgeni leans in close to him. “ _Show me to bathroom_?” he asks, and that’s… far less intimate than what Sid had been hoping for, but, he’ll take it.

“Oh- _yes, can do_.” he says, standing and clearing his throat. Everyone looked to him, and he hesitates a moment before he says. “Uh- Evgeni asked me to show him the bathroom, so, we’re gonna-”

“Of course,” Mario says quickly, and Sid’s thankful for it, gesturing for Evgeni to follow him down the hall and around the corner. When they get to the bathroom, though, Sid doesn’t even get to say anything before Evgeni grabs his hand and drags him in, closing the door behind them

“ _What are you-_ ” Sid asks, but Evgeni shushes him, locking the door before he turns back to Sid.

“ _I have something I need to show you_ ,” he says, and Sid’s heart rate ratchets up to about a million beats per minute at the same second as all the air in his lungs decides to leave. “ _It’s… important, and I know you might not have the same thing but-”_

“ _Show me.”_ Sid says, breathless. Evgeni just stares at him for a few seconds before he starts picking at the buckle on his bracelet, and Sid’s heart stops.

Logically, Sid knew that his name had to be on _someone_. Even when marks didn’t match, there was such a low percentage of people who didn’t have _someone_ out there without their name. _Seeing_ his name on someone else, though, made his heart jump into his throat.

“ _If you don’t match, that’s fine_.” Evgeni says, squirming a little, because it was probably really weird for a practical stranger to stare at your wrist for so long. “ _I just thought… you should know, if we’re going to be playing together._ ”

Sid steps back, and doesn’t say anything- because, really, what do you say to that? Instead, he does something that’s probably a little worse, and just starts unbuttoning his shirt without explanation. Evgeni makes and sound that’s between distressed and confused, so Sid just says “ _wait_ ” as he gets to his last button.

There’s an adhesive bandage covering part of Sid’s side, right under his ribcage, and he regrets just ripping it off for a second before he hears Evgeni make another sound, stepping closer to him. He runs his fingers across the letters curling up Sid’s side, and Sid is sure he can feel his pulse there, too.

“ _That’s my name_.” Evgeni says quietly, barely a whisper.

“ _It is._ ” Sid said, putting his hand over Evgeni’s and smiling at him tentatively. Evgeni gapes at him for a moment, eyes wide, before a smile spreads across his face, too.

“ _I wanted to be here, as soon as I heard you got drafted.”_ he says, moving his hand up from Sid’s mark to rest over his heart, his other hand coming up to cup Sid’s cheek. He’s babbling, almost too quickly for Sid to follow, but Sid doesn’t have the breath or heart to ask him to slow down. “ _I knew we might not match, but… I had to know. I had to get to know you, play with you._ ”

“ _We match_.” Sid says. “ _I want to know you, too_.”

“ _We will, now_.” Evgeni says- _promises_ , and Sid’s smile gets wider.

“ _We will_.” he echoes. Evgeni laughs, and it sounds a little wet, like he’s holding back tears.

“ _This was worth hiding in a bathroom for_.” he says, and Sid frowns, confused. He means to ask, but, Evgeni shakes his head. “ _They’re probably going to start wondering where we are; we should get back_.”

Sid frowns even more, but nods, knowing Evgeni’s probably right. “ _Where are you staying_?” he asks as he starts buttoning his shirt again.

“ _With Seryozha.”_ Evgeni says, putting his bracelet back on. Sid gives it a mournful look; now that he’s seen his name there, it doesn’t feel right that it’s being hidden again. He knows it has to be, but, that doesn’t make things any better.

“ _Can I come see you there tomorrow, maybe?_ ” Sid asks, hopeful, and Evgeni nods enthusiastically.

“ _Of course_ ,” he says. “ _We’ve got a lot to talk about.”_

 _“We really do_.” Sid sighs. Evgeni opens the door again, and lets him out first. Sid’s a little surprised when Evgeni takes his hand as they walk down the hall, but he doesn’t shake him off, and instead threads their fingers together and squeezes his hand. Evgeni smiles.

Their joined hands draw stares when they get back to the living room, but, neither of them draw away as they go to sit back on the couch, and no one else says anything about it. The look Mario gives Sid, though, clearly means “we’re going to talk about this when everyone leaves”, and Sid holds back a sigh. There goes another secret.

Though, he thinks as Evgeni squeezes his hand again, and leans into his side, maybe this is one he’s happy to share, at least a little.


End file.
